Keep it Fresh: The top 5 Farmers’ Market in Paris

Keep it Fresh: The top 5 Farmers’ Market in Paris

In this article, we will take a farmer’s market to be a public and recurring assembly of farmers or their representatives selling the food that they produced directly to consumers. In Paris, open markets have been in existence since the 15th century with farmers, bakers, fishermen, olive growers and chicken farmers coming from all over France to sell their products at reasonable prices.

However, over time the farmer’s market in Paris has evolved to be a mix between the farmers’ market and a traders’ market, with the livestock markets disappearing and the clothes and crafts stalls expanding. The largest markets are often known as fairs (foires). Foires are big events in a local calendar, so it is always a good idea to look out for them during your visit.

Today, Paris is home to over 80 food markets ranging in size and variety. Most of the farmers’ market are temporary, only occurring a few days a week, but others are permanently integrated into Parisian streets. Below, we discuss the top 5 farmers’ market in Paris;  

1. Marché des Enfants Rouges

Vegetables for sale at the Marché des Enfants Rouges – Wikipedia

Marché des Enfants Rouges offers fresh fruits, vegetables, flowers and bread, as well as restaurants where people gather for Moroccan couscous, Lebanese sandwiches, and Italian deli specialties. This space is filled with people from all walks of life; elderly locals, young professionals, and curious tourists who are all here to share the experience of a vibrant, energetic market atmosphere.

The market is tucked off the busy 39 Rue de Bretagne in the Marais (3rd) arrondissement. Once inside the market, you’ll find yourself in a dense maze of multicultural foods and vendors.

This buzzing hub for food sellers of all types and specialties was established in 1615 as the “petit marché du Marais”, translating to “little market of the Marais”, under the reign of Louis XIII. At this time, it was located in the heart of the old Temple district.

Marché des Enfants Rouges is the oldest covered food market in Paris, France. It was listed as a historic monument since 1982. The market was closed for a brief period in the 1990s until locals rallied together to reinstate the food market. In 2000, it was opened in the 3rd arrondissement, its current location.

Marché des Enfants Rouges in English translates to “Market of the Red Children”, and refers to the nearby “Hospice des Enfants-Rouges” where orphans were clothed in red (the color of charity). The institution remained close to the market for two centuries, welcomed thousands of children between 1535 and 1772.

When it closed, part of the premises was transformed into a fire station, then destroyed a few decades later. Today, all that remains of this hospital is the name of the oldest food market.

For those who want to travel with their taste buds within the market we highly recommend you go to Alain Miam, the king of sandwiches generous in cheese and tasty as you wish, the Moroccan caterer for an eggplant salad to die for, or to the Japanese stand, Chez Takeo for their delicious Donburi with sardines or tofu.

Practical information

Address: 39 Rue de Bretagne in the 3^rd arrondissement in the Haute-Marais

Open:

Tue – Thur: 8.30am-1pm, 4pm-8.30pm

Fri – Sat: 8.30am-1pm, 4pm-8.30pm

Sun: 8.30am-5pm

2. Saxe-Breteuil Market

Saxe-Breteuil Market, meat stall – Wikimedia Commons

Saxe-Breteuil is an open-air food market filled with an excellent selection of high-quality meats, cheeses, seafood, fruits and veggies heaped high on the tables in artfully designed and appealing displays. Not to mention on either side of the street you’ll find tables piled high with tablecloths, handmade soaps, jams and jellies, items for the home and kitchen and more.

This market has the reputation of being one of the best and certainly the most beautiful in Paris. The setup of Saxe-Breteuil Market is one of a kind, offering perfectly framed views of the Eiffel Tower, creating a stunning setting that will astonish any living being.

This busy market is located behind the École Militaire and the UNESCO Headquarters in the 7th arrondissement along Avenue de Saxe, a beautiful street lined with sycamore trees and elegant Parisian buildings. This street sits along the same axis as the Champ de Mars that stretches from the Eiffel Tower to the Ecole Militaire.

The market’s two lanes of stands are wide and never crowded; nobody pushes you, and the stallholders do not shout at the customers. Farmers and producers come from all over France to sell their specialties, and this market is known for its high-quality foods, including many organic ones.

For those visiting the market, there are about 80 stallholders, most of them selling food. It is open every Thursday and Saturday morning.

To aid you in selecting the best stalls we highly recommend ‘Le Bar aux saveurs’ that offers a wide variety of lettuces, potatoes, mushrooms, herbs and leaves, including beetroot leaves or Salsola.

Another incredible stall is ‘La Tomate d’Alençon’ that only sells tomatoes, red, green or maroon, all organic and appetizing and at reasonable prices.

Practical information

Address: Avenue de Saxe between Place de Breteuil and Avenue de Ségur, 7th arrondisement

Open: Thursdays and Saturdays from 7:00AM – 2:30PM

3. Marché Bastille

Marché Bastille – Wikimedia Commons

Marché Bastille, also known as Marché Richard Lenoir, is one of the largest outdoors Parisian food markets with over 150 stalls. This is where both locals and tourists can purchase their supplies directly from producers of seafood, meat, poultry, charcuterie, cheese, olives, fruit and vegetables, and flowers.

The market is one of the easiest and most central open-air markets, extending from place de la Bastille along Boulevard Richard-Lenoir. Marché Bastille opens from 7am to 3pm, every Thursday and Sunday comes and with Place de la Bastille’s Colonne de Juillet as the backdrop.

This is one of the numerous wide, tree-lined boulevards that were part of the vast public works carried out in Paris by Baron Haussmann during the Second Empire of Napoleon III. The Canal de St Martin flows beneath Bvd Richard-Lenoir.

On Saturdays, the food vendors give way to an arts and crafts market (Le Marché de la Création Bastille, technically a different market all together), where you can pick up cheap and cheerful paintings and other hand-made bits and pieces.

Practical information

Address: At the corner of Place de la Bastille and Boulevard Richard Lenoir in the 11th arrondissement

Open: All year round, every Thursday and Sunday from 7 am to 3 pm

4. Rue Cler Market Street

Fruit shop, Rue Cler market street – Wikimedia Commons

Rue Cler Market Street is one of Paris’ most beloved market streets. Brimming with a wonderful selection of specialty food stores, pastry shops, butchers, delicatessens, cheese specialists, fishmongers, greengrocers, chocolate shops and cafés.

The Rue Cler Market Street runs through the heart of the 7th arrondissement, spanning 232 hectares. This market was originally set up in the city centre in the 10th century. It was later relocated further out of town in 1969 because demand on suppliers was so high.

The current site, in the southern suburbs, is easily accessible by train and car. This area is associated with the French nobility. Most of the street is a pedestrian area not open to cars and still has its original cobblestones.

Rue Cler is best discovered slowly, by pushing open door after door, tasting one delicacy after another, and listening to the stories behind them, until the true scope of the street’s delights becomes deliciously evident.

Practical information

Address: rue Cler, 7th arrondissement

Open: Weekdays, all day Saturday and Sunday mornings

5. Les Puces flea market

Les Puces Flea Market – Unsplash

Officially known as Le Marché aux Puces de Saint-Ouen, but known to everyone as Les Puces (The Fleas), is the world’s largest antiques market and the best flea market in Paris. The market gained international recognition between 1905 and 1914 when the press gave picturesque description of the market, attracting an increase in the number of curious visitors and traders.

Les Puces flea market is located in the north of Paris, a few steps away from the Sacre Coeur Basilica and Moulin Rouge, it is held every Saturdays and Sundays from 10am to 6pm and on Mondays from 11am to 5pm. We strongly recommend visiting the Puces on Saturday or Sunday because many dealers aren’t open on Monday, or only open by appointment.

The market covers close to 20 acres and has over 3,000 vendor boutiques, stalls, and showrooms packed along a maze of lanes and alleys plus cafés, bars, and sidewalk vendors.

It currently consists of twelve covered markets (Antica, Biron, Cambo, Dauphine, l’Entrepôt, Jules-Vallès, Malassis, le Passage, Paul Bert and Serpette, l’Usine and Vernaison), five shopping streets Pucières (Rue Jules Vallès, Rue Lecuyer, Rue Paul Bert, Rue des Rosiers and Impasse Simon) and merchant unpacking on the sidewalks, each with its own identity, forming a picturesque and friendly whole.

Les Puces flea market is where you can find everything from museum-quality 17th century furniture and 18th century gilded mirrors to vintage Chanel shoes, from Hermès Berkin bags and rare Patek Philippe gold pocket watches to Art Deco objects from the 1930s and American leather jackets from the 1960s.

Book with us for a  tour to the largest antique market.

Practical information

Address: 99 All. des Rosiers, 93400 Saint-Ouen-sur-Seine, France

Open:  

Friday from 8 p.m. to 12 p.m

Saturday & Sunday from 10 a.m. to 18 p.m.

Monday from 11 a.m. to 17 p.m.

We also have available food tours in Paris should you consider exploring beyond the markets to the exquisite French dining spaces and wineries!